!!The novel

* ShownTheirWork: {{Inverted|Trope}}. [[WordOfGod Clancy himself]] had confirmed that he [[https://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=389x4430505 made up the cellulose-encased laser-guided bomb.]]
-->I learned later that stealty [sic] bombs were looked at, but the problem was combining stealth and ballistic stability. [[TechnologyMarchesOn The problem was never solved, and the project was cancelled.]]

!!The film

* DisownedAdaptation: Creator/TomClancy was very critical of the film adaptation of ''Clear and Present Danger''. Most notably, he disliked the ending. In the movie, Ryan blows the lid off the covert operation in Colombia by publicly testifying before Congress. In the book, the men responsible for the operation are quietly dealt with behind the scenes. Tom Clancy feels that Jack Ryan would never take a course of action that would result in the United States being damaged by a major scandal.
* DeletedRole: {{Downplayed|Trope}} with Anne Archer's role. A hefty chunk of her role, [[WhatCouldHaveBeen including a subplot about Cathy Ryan]] was left on the cutting room floor after a negative response with test audiences.
* FakeAmerican: British-born actor Donald Moffat as President Bennett.
* MissingTrailerScene: The line "Are you going away again?" was never said anywhere in the film. Subverted with the line "We've got our own little war," which only appears on a computer screen, unlike in the trailer where it was said on a radio.
* OrphanedReference: In the scene where Ryan hacks onto Ritter's computer, SHOWBOAT briefly appears on the screen above RECIPROCITY. Operation SHOWBOAT was a subplot in the [[Literature/ClearAndPresentDanger the original novel]] that was [[ExecutiveMeddling removed due to objections from]] [[BackedByThePentagon the Department of Defense.]]
* RecycledSet: The Oval Office set was originally built for ''Film/{{Dave}}''.
* StockFootage: Footage shot for this film, featuring the F-18 Hornet, was used for 10 seasons in the opening titles on the Creator/{{Paramount}} series ''Series/{{JAG}}''. Footage from the convoy ambush scene was also used by ''JAG'', in the first season episode "War Cries" (with careful editing to remove Creator/HarrisonFord in a suit and insert David James Elliot in Navy Whites).
* ThrowItIn: Ryan's line asking Ritter if he played tennis (to distract him during the computer showdown) was ad-libbed by Creator/HarrisonFord.
* WhatCouldHaveBeen:
** A subplot involving Cathy Ryan performing experimental eye surgery on a child was filmed, but cut from the final product.
** The first draft of the script was written by Creator/JohnMilius, and allegedly it was faithful enough to the book that Creator/TomClancy loved it. This script was ultimately discarded because, just like in the book, Jack Ryan barely appears in the first half of the story (instead the first half of the story is mainly about John Clark and the American soldiers in Colombia) and the studio wanted Jack Ryan to be at the center of the story (they feared that if Jack Ryan's role wasn't big enough, Creator/HarrisonFord would not agree to star).
** Plans were in motion to adapt ''Literature/TheCardinalOfTheKremlin'', which would have been a direct sequel to ''Film/TheHuntForRedOctober''. However, various plans to adapt the novel into a script failed, allegedly because the material (which revolved around "spy games" and espionage in Russia set against The UsefulNotes/ColdWar) was too difficult to adapt for the screen. Various press reports also suggest that efforts were made to adapt ''Literature/DebtOfHonor'' (which was released in 1996) and ''Film/TheSumOfAllFears'', but this never got past the drawing board, and both Creator/HarrisonFord and director Creator/PhillipNoyce officially abandoned the potential sequel in 2000. ''Sum of All Fears'' was subsequently given a ContinuityReboot and was released in 2002.

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